Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
com
Home > Verb Tense Tutorial > Present Perfect
Present Perfect
f t g+ p
The present perfect is a verb tense which is used to show that an action has taken place
once or many times before now. The present perfect is most frequently used to talk about
experiences or changes that have taken place, but there are other less common uses as
well. Read on for detailed descriptions, examples, and present perfect exercises.
The present perfect is formed using has/have + past participle. Questions are indicated
by inverting the subject and has/have. Negatives are made with not.
We use the present perfect to say that an action happened at an unspecified time before
now. The exact time is not important. You CANNOT use the present perfect with specific
time expressions such as: yesterday, one year ago, last week, when I was a child, when I
lived in Japan, at that moment, that day, one day, etc. We CAN use the present perfect
with unspecific expressions such as: ever, never, once, many times, several times, before,
so far, already, yet, etc.
Examples:
The concept of "unspecified time" can be very confusing to English learners. It is best to
associate present perfect with the following topics:
TOPIC 1 Experience
You can use the present perfect to describe your experience. It is like saying, "I have the
experience of..." You can also use this tense to say that you have never had a certain
experience. The present perfect is NOT used to describe a specific event.
Examples:
We often use the present perfect to talk about change that has happened over a period of
time.
Examples:
TOPIC 3 Accomplishments
We often use the present perfect to list the accomplishments of individuals and humanity.
You cannot mention a specific time.
Examples:
We often use the present perfect to say that an action which we expected has not
happened. Using the present perfect suggests that we are still waiting for the action to
happen.
Examples:
We also use the present perfect to talk about several different actions which have occurred
in the past at different times. Present perfect suggests the process is not complete and
more actions are possible.
Examples:
When we use the present perfect it means that something has happened at some point in
our lives before now. Remember, the exact time the action happened is not important.
Sometimes, we want to limit the time we are looking in for an experience. We can do this
with expressions such as: in the last week, in the last year, this week, this month, so far, up
to now, etc.
Examples:
NOTICE
"Last year" and "in the last year" are very different in meaning. "Last year" means the year
before now, and it is considered a specific time which requires simple past. "In the last
year" means from 365 days ago until now. It is not considered a specific time, so it requires
present perfect.
Examples:
With non-continuous verbs and non-continuous uses of mixed verbs, we use the present
perfect to show that something started in the past and has continued up until now. "For five
minutes," "for two weeks," and "since Tuesday" are all durations which can be used with
the present perfect.
Examples:
ADVERB PLACEMENT
The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only,
never, ever, still, just, etc.
Examples:
ACTIVE / PASSIVE
Examples:
Verb Tense Exercise 12 Simple Past, Present Perfect, and Past Perfect
Verb Tense Exercise 16 Present and Past Tenses with Non-Continuous Verbs
Verb Tense Exercise 17 Present and Past Tense Review